Toyota Previa
The Toyota Previa, also known as the Toyota Estima (エスティマ) in Japan, and Toyota Tarago in Australia, is an MPV or multi-purpose vehicle (known as a minivan in North America) produced by Toyota since 1990. The name "Previa" is derived from the Spanish and Italian for "preview," as Toyota saw the first Previa as a vehicle that would preview technologies used in future minivans. Along with the Toyota Sienna, the Previa is the second largest minivan in Toyota's line-up after the bigger and more luxurious Alphard/Vellfire (which is not offered in most Western markets). 1st Generation The first generation, designed by Toyota designer Tokuo Fukuichi and Calty designer David Doyle in 1987 (patent filed December 24, 1987), was introduced in January 1990, had only one sliding side door for the rear passengers. It featured a unique mid-engined platform, where the inline four cylinder gasoline-powered engine was installed almost flat (at a 75-degree angle), beneath the front seats. Installing the engine in this configuration allowed moderately easy access to the spark plugs, which were located underneath a panel on the upper left-side of the vehicle, after removing the front passenger seat, the carpet, and an access panel. All engine-driven accessories, such as the alternator, power steering pump, air conditioning compressor, and radiator fan, are accessible from the front hood, driven off the front of the engine by an accessory driveshaft, and is known as the Supplemental Accessory Drive System, or "SADS." This allows for even front/rear weight distribution, which benefits ride quality and handling. However, it also prevents the installation of a larger engine, while the cost could not be relayed by sharing the platform with other vehicles. The first generation Previa was 4,750 mm (187.0 in) long and 1,803 mm (71.0 in) wide. In Japan, two smaller versions, the Toyota Estima Lucida and Toyota Estima Emina, were produced, which were approximately 110 mm (4.3 in) narrower and 70 mm (2.8 in) shorter than the standard model, which continued to be sold in Japan but as the "wide-body" Estima. The reason for the difference between the smaller Emina and Lucida models is thevehicle tax system in Japan, which is based on the product of length and width of the car, and the smaller variants fall into a lower tax band. The Estima Emina and Estima Lucida were also available with a 2.2-liter diesel engine (3C-T and 3C-TE).2 In Japan, the Estima was exclusive to Toyota Japanese dealerships called Toyota Store. The first generation Previa was available in both rear- and all-wheel drive versions (calledAll-Trac) and powered by a 135 hp (101 kW) JIS (99 kW) four-cylinder 2.4-liter fuel injection engine. Available with a four-speed automatic or five-speed manual gearbox, this Previa also seated seven or eight people, with three seating configurations offered (North America only received the seven passenger configurations, however). All configurations have a driver and front passenger seat forward, and a three-seat bench seat at the rear that splits and folds flat against the sides of the cabin. The eight-seat configuration contains a 2/1 split swiveling bench seat in the middle row, while the seven-seat configurations contain either two independently swiveling captain's chairs (referred to as "Quad Seating"), in the middle row or a two-seat bench offset towards the driver's side. The third row is also better upholstered in the seven-seat version. It was available with either four-wheel disc brakes or traditional front disc/rear drum brake setup, with anti-lock brakes (ABS) as an option. Category:Toyota Category:Post-war Category:Modern